Ameesha Patel on why Bollywood is taking a beating: You don't find a heroine…

Ameesha Patel is currently gearing up for the release of her upcoming film Gadar 2. She will be seen opposite Sunny Deol in the action drama. Ahead of the release of her film, Ameesha spoke to Republic Digital about Bollywood losing its charm while highlighting "substance roles", especially for women, had disappeared.  

3 things you need to know

• Sunny Deol and Ameesha Patel starrer Gadar 2 will hit the screens on August 11. 
• During the interview, Ameesha Patel talked about the reasons why Bollywood had lost its charm.
• She also highlighted that heroines have become less visible in film posters. 

Ameesha Patel says Bollywood has lost its charm

In a freewheeling chat with Republic Digital, Ameesha Patel expressed concerns over the disappearance of "substance roles" in Bollywood. She lamented that such roles had become rare while highlighting the importance of featuring all major characters of a film in the poster, including the leading heroine. Ameesha said one of the reasons why the audience was losing interest in watching Bollywood films is because the leading heroines are missing from film posters. "Substance roles have vanished. There are very few these days. Women have vanished even from film posters. And I guess that is why Bollywood is taking a beating."

Recalling the days when Hindi cinema focussed on every aspect and artist in the film, Ameesha said that the "old world charm that people loved about Bollywood" has disappeared. "It was always about a hero, heroine, villain, comedian, music, songs, glamourous clothes," she said while adding, "The audiences turned to Bollywood for chartbuster music, fashion inspiration, and larger-than-life experiences." "Cinema was all about magic. Bollywood was all about magic with the hard-hitting on-and-off films which were content-based," Ameesha averred.

(Ameesha Patel makes sharp observations about Hindi film industry | Image: Ameesha Patel/Instagram)Ameesha further added,

Films are not just about the hero, says Ameesha Patel

Continuing, Ameesha said that the current state of Bollywood is disheartening because heroines are no longer prominently featured on film posters. She highlighted how their absence affects the overall experience. She said while acknowledging that heroes played a huge part in drawing the audiences to the theatres, that heroines, villains, and comedians too are an important part of a film's narrative. She stated that previously, film posters used to feature all key characters, but today, heroines have become less visible. 

"Bollywood is about the magical, larger-than-life love stories. But today, you don't even find a heroine on the poster which is so sad because they are an important part of cinema. A film is not just about the hero. Yes, he is very important, he does draw the audiences in but the heroine is very important too, as is a villain or a comedian," she said.

(Ameesha Patel weighs in on the disappearance of heroines from film posters | Image: Ameesha Patel/Instagram)

The actress finds the trend disappointing because in her view a significant section of the audience comes to watch a film in theatres for their favourite actress. In her opinion, neglecting heroines is one of the reasons why Bollywood losing its appeal among cinema-goers. "I know there are a huge number of audiences that go in to just see their favourite actress and not giving them the same importance is somewhere why Bollywood is taking a beating," Ameesha concluded.